Memory Maps BCA '19 by Masquerola

BCA ‘19 MEMORY MAPS

DEDICATION This book is dedicated to anyone in the past that has helped you get to where you are today, whenever you may be reading this. Friends, family, teachers, strangers– anyone who gave you a little nudge along the way. Those people are now a small part of you, whether you’re looking back at this at 20, 30, 60, or 100. This book is also dedicated to those in the present who want to better appreciate how far they’ve come. Take a moment. Reflect. Savor the now. And finally, this book is dedicated to your future partner, spouse, and children, and anyone else whose lives you’ll have a big influence on in the future. These are the special people in your life who you make new memories with.

CREDITS PHOTOGRAPHERS

Dan Hu is the editor and publisher of Memory Maps, among other things.

THERESE PATROSIO, who has been there every step of the way.

GOUTHAM SWAMINATHAN

ELISA HESTERBRINK

JULIA SHNEIDMAN

SABINE NOURREDINE

SOPHIA ZUO

INSPIRATION / MISSION It was back on the 18th of January, freshly into the new year 2019 CE, when Iris Kim approached me during a lazy free hour to take a walk around the school. This turned out not to be just any normal walk– Iris began to tell me memories she had of different places around BCA. It was mostly small things, like “this here was my old locker”, or “I used to listen to Ryan play the guitar over there”. The power of these memories didn’t hit me until we reached upper caf and she sat down in a seemingly random chair towards the corner.

“This is where I met my boyfriend.”

In a moment of inspiration, this book idea came to me. It wouldn’t be until April that I’d actually act on it, but I’m glad I did so anyways. I hope I’ve given us seniors a reason to reflect on our times here at BCA, both good and bad. I hope you’ve had fun doing photoshoots. And I hope you’ll come back to this book in the future to relive memories. That’s it. I hope it was worth the effort. So now that we’ve reflected and are better people after what we’ve been through, it’s time to take over the world, Class of 2019! – Dan 6.9.19 @ 1:01 am 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Alice Ipekci Anand Shetler AVPA-M Brian Cho byounny cass Celina Peralta Chem Lads Ciro Randazzo Dan Hu Dan Hu and Jesper Bajwa Derek

6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28

Emily Slobodenyuk Goutham Swaminathan Grace Liang Grace Tan Irmak Sensoz Jasmine DeGuzman Jeremy Kim Jia, Michael Joyce Zheng Julia (Silva) Julia Schneidman + Remy Goldberg

30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48 50

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Julia Schneidman Kavita A. Kevin Chew Kincent Kyle Han Kyle (Ikuma) Madelyn Kwak Matthew Addvensky and Anoushka Ramkumar Maya Michelle and Nicole Mikey Pintouri

52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66

Miri Goodman Mo Raphael Rakosi-Schmidt Remy Goldberg Ronnie Sarah Lackey and Akanksha Srivastava shasha T Tiger Hashikura Victoria

68 70 72

74 76 78 80 82 84 86 88 90 92

ALICE IPEKCI THE VISUAL LAB Every morning in IGS, Mr Guthrie would have us fill in the blanks to the statement, “Make it a great...” and keep creating new ones throughout the year. Whoever made IGS 6 minutes shorter between sophomore and junior year made a bad decision. In this room, I met so many amazing and talented friends amongst all grades. With less than 20 days left of school, we’re in our final “Make it a great...” cycle now.

ANAND SHETLER COMP SCI ROOM The comp sci room is a favorite of many ATCS students and BCA students in general. But for me, it brings back the memory of my very first hackathon, Local Hack Day, where I blasted Darude Sandstorm for 10 hours straight with surprisingly few complaints. Even more surprisingly, it’s where I got to know Nicole so much better and somehow woo her over with my obviously overwhelming (and totally not irritating) musical charm.

AVPA-M JUNIOR PROM, BUT ONLY BECAUSE THAT’S THE ONLY GROUP PHOTO WE COULD FIND Not leaving a note here is only treble because Dan now has to improvise this description. I mean, it’s not a major problem, it only takes a minuet to write. In fact I’m a natural at this, you can call description-writing my forte. Y’all can’t even Handel this. Okay, time to give this a rest. - written by Dan at 1 in the morning because they didn’t submit a description by the deadline

BRIAN CHO BROOK SIDE I used to go to this spot a lot because it gave me a place to think by myself. I hated being inside a building all day because it felt so stale. This gave me a place to breathe and take in nature, smelling the grass and hearing the birds. It was an escape. I could never relax in school, so I did all that I could to get out. I don’t even know if it’s allowed to be here but I took that chance. I don’t recommend it although, it served me well.

byounny DR. KIM’S ROOM I came here initially for Dougie’s project, but found myself here for most of junior into senior year because my friends did research with him. Getting through the hell period of late junior- early senior year in the lab with my friends made it a lil more bearable. Once in a while I still come here to curl up in a chair for a nap.

cass OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM It’s where I’ve danced, yelled, laughed, and died (but have yet to cry I think). It’s where I’ve waited before recitals, made too much noise wearing the Indian-IDA costume while practicing for KIDA, and unfortunately saw a then-senior changing behind the pole for a Valentine’s Day performance. It’s where I’ve *almost* been caught opening the door for friends, snuck Chocolate Comp samples, and blasted I’m Not Sorry on my glitchy Bluetooth speaker. It’s one spot, but a hundred memories. 17

CELINA PERALTA ROOM 5 STAIRWELL If you didn’t know, BCA actually has a third practice room apart from the two in Mr. Lemma’s room--the stairwell just down the hall past Room 5. It’s a place where I’ve been able to relax and refocus myself over the years and to occasionally jam out with friends. I recorded a song of mine that I’m relatively proud of there. You can even hear the natural reverb of the space in the recording.

CHEM LADS DR. CRANE’S ROOM AP Chem as a senior was a fun-filled load of shenanigans. After submitting out college apps, we experienced a remarkable phenomenon in which we appeared to age backward a few months every time we showed up to class. From going hard on the titrations to decorating Orgo quizzes with creative nomenclature to failing the actual AP exam, the whole year turned out surprisingly fun, at least for a Chemistry course :/

CIRO RANDAZZO THE ARENA Mrs. Rios’s room, Mr. Madden’s room, the MUN Fishbowl; it’s gone by many names in our four years here. The most accurate by far, though, would be the Arena. There’s nothing like a good sword fight after two long days of running around like crazy making sure that AMUN runs smoothly. Do we know how it started? Nope. Do we know how it ended? In glorious victory, of course (not getting caught, that is).

DAN HU THE DUNGEON This is where I shot my first short film. This is where I fell in love with film directing. I’ve gotta thank Ms. Berwick for assigning that project at the end of sophomore year– and all the teachers and friends that have helped me with filmmaking along the way. Hope to make some more films soon.

DAN HU AND JESPER BAJWA ColorInBCA We founded IRIS as a meditation club to sneak some naptime into school– but instead, we ended up painting the walls of the basement hallway. Wild. More students chill during their frees in the hallway now than before, so that’s good. We hope we brought people together during the mural painting, and that people had time to relax and chat while doing it– and that we accomplished the original intention of IRIS of helping kids destress. We hope we’ve livened up the school just a little bit. And we hope kids will spend their frees in the ColorInBCA hallway for years to come. 26

DEREK DR. PERGOLIZZI’S ROOM I spent a tremendous amount of my free time in Dr. P’s room over these last few years. It was always a quiet place for me, quieter than the cafeteria at least, where I could do work. But that’s not to say I was alone - I made a lot of good friends in that room and got a chance to meet some brilliant people that are going to go on to do great things. Not to mention Dr. P, who’s wit and wisdom is unmatched in this school.

EMILY SLOBODENYUK BREEZEWAY Before the ramp was installed, the breezeway was like a safe haven for me. I could perch on the elevated platforms and stare at traffic, bustling students, or just grind out some work. I always remember one day, during elective hour, a week before Christmas break junior year, despite the stress and tests, I found myself smiling and cackling in the darkened breezeway, listening to my friends singing Christmas carols and showtunes. It is a place of friends and optimism.

GOUTHAM SWAMINATHAN BEHIND THE GREENHOUSE I think the ESC is one of those overlooked spots at BCA and I’d like to keep it that way. It’ll always be my go-to spot for chill time.

GRACE LIANG GREENHOUSE Was I skipping stuco speeches or appreciating the greenhouse for the first time?

GRACE TAN WINDOW ON THE SECOND FLOOR OUTSIDE UPPER CAF “I was on the way to my first BCA class ever — a math class — but for a sec I stopped in front of this window, just feeling so giddy and excited and realizing, “”Wow, I’m really here!” Throughout the next four years, any time I got really demotivated or discouraged — and that would definitely happen — it helped to try to remember that feeling, that along the way I don’t forget why I started this in the first place at all.” 37

IRMAK SENSOZ LOWER LOT Many of my BCA memories are attached to lower lot — induction, plays, ceremonies — they all begin and end there! One day, a few weeks after I had gotten my license, I strolled in to school casually at 11:30 am... I’m not sure how common accidents with stationary objects are, but I managed to hit a parked car. To the owner of that immeasurably lucky vehicle, I’m very sorry!

JASMINE DEGUZMAN TREE STAIRCASE Freshman year my friend and I both had a first hour language class. Since we were in the same IGS we always walked together and used this staircase. It became a running joke between the two of us to say hello to the big tree in the window every morning, we even named it “Nelson.”

JEREMY KIM DR. KIM’S ROOM Oranges and Carbon Nanotubes: the perfect representation of this room. Whether it was grinding for organic chemistry or spending time with your friends while eating oranges, countless memories were shared in Dr. Kim’s room. Aspects of school have been embodied in this room: homework, research, collaboration, stress, lunch, fooooooddddd, excitement, discovery, guidance, and, most importantly, fun.

JIA, MICHAEL LOCKERS 2427 & 2428 The place with which we identified the most. Our friend group formed at these lockers, and it was the place we returned to every day without fail.

JOYCE ZHENG IDK WHAT TO CALL THIS PART OF THE BUILDING When the acousitcs are just right - written by Dan at 2 in the morning because they didn’t submit a description by the deadline

JULIA LOWER BREEZEWAY It’s the place you go to when you still don’t have your privileges as a freshman. It’s the place you go to study when everywhere else is either too loud or too quiet. It’s the place where you will most likely see random teachers passing by (so be ready for awkward hi’s and maybe some high fives). The lower breezeway is truly a place that you go to and make what you want of it.

JULIA SCHNEIDMAN + REMY GOLDBERG MR. MADDEN’S ROOM We are two peas in a pod, two wafers in a KitKat, two gloves in a glovebox, two pedals on a bicycle, two wings of an airplane, two lenses of a glasses, two nostrils on a nose, - written by Dan at 2 in the morning because they didn’t submit a description by the deadline

JULIA SCHNEIDMAN ROOM 150 My first memory of BCA comes from room 150. I walked into that hallway on a Sunday in fifth grade, nervous about what would come next. A math team? What would everyone think of me? However, every weekend, room 150, with its shelves full of math books, the freezer filled with chocolate, and chairs occupied by excited students, has been a place where I can talk to people about anything, whether exciting (yes those exist) math problems, or anything in which we have a common interest. Room 150 has opened up doors for me leading to new interests, lifelong friendships and life-changing experiences. 53

KAVITA A. MS. DK’S ROOM After three years spent living here, I’ve felt most at home here. Through the craziness and stress of the school, this room always allowed me to rant about my problems or act out a play, or write a children’s book. Best memories were playing freeze dance, getting crabbed, writing a children’s book, complaining about wellness seminar, or just sitting and talking in the one class that I looked forward to each day.

KEVIN CHEW HALLWAY Although BCA is home to many unique places such as the Research Labs, Lower Caf, and Makerspace, the one place I will remember most from BCA is the hallway. Meeting new people and talking to friends in the hallway is what really made high school enjoyable for me. Every hour, you never knew who was going to be there and the laughs I shared were always different.

KINCENT JUNIOR HALLWAY As memory serves, the junior hallway was always filled with the most talented and hardworking people I could think off. Every time I looked down the hallway, I could see a vast sea of unlimited potential. I am so glad that I attended BCA. I am so glad to have met all of my friends here because they are all such smart and supportive people. I truly wish the best for you in the future my classmates and friends.

KYLE COMMONS It was practically my second home. Every minute at school spent here grinding. Work, run up to upper cafe and eat lunch for 10 minutes, run back down and work the rest of the hour. Work just wasn’t the same anywhere else. Couldn’t find the same focus, the same flow... Walking out with a feeling of accomplishment, satisfaction and just being really happy :D

KYLE MR. NODARSE’S ROOM Intro to Electronics was honestly a highlight of my time at BCA. It was here where Mr. Nodarse taught us to hold our hot soldering irons like the statue of liberty and to dab our soldering irons in those metal sponges we called Tomas’ hair. It was also in this classroom where we had our most talented performers sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” accompanied our piezo buzzer orchestra. I’m so fortunate to have had such an amazing class with such a legendary teacher. 62

MADELYN KWAK THE GRILL Adventure awaits. :) - written by Dan at 2 in the morning because they didn’t submit a description by the deadline

MATTHEW ADDVENSKY AND ANOUSHKA RAMKUMAR PROFE. SELTZER’S ROOM Here is where our friendship began to blossom. One with a passion for Spanish, the other just trying to get by. Together they embark on an 8 month journey traveling to Bergen Town Center for lunch, to the depths of southern Bergen County for bibimbap, and to Riverside Mall for quick shopping sprees—while still getting back in time for their favorite class of the day.

MAYA TRACK Some of the best conversations over the past few years have happened while walking the track or just sitting on the track with my friends.

MICHELLE AND NICOLE BETWEEN THE CHEM AND MATH WINGS It was the best of times, it was the worst of times- actually, it was just the worst of times. This doorway marks the symbolic halfway point between BC Calc and PO Chem, neither of which were very fun to visit at that point in our lives. But, hey, we made it. Junior year may have been hell, but we know now that BCA is worth it for the people who pull you through!

MIKEY PINTOURI BEHIND THE TRACK Whether it was eating lunch during field day, trying to balance on the ropes course, or just playing catch during my frees, the area in the back of the track has always been a fun and peaceful place to hang out. At the end of the year when the weather is nice and school slows down, I always knew I could go back there and relax in the nice June weather with some friends.

MIRI GOODMAN BREEZEWAY This place always seems like a transition place and since the ramp is there blocking the other ledge, this place is the best place and worst place to sit. I love how the map of the school is almost completely wrong as it reminds me of how much this school can change in just a few short years.

MO MR. SAM’S ROOM Room 164, Mr. Sam’s room has been really special to me for the past 4 years. He is my IGS teacher and I have had him for many many different classes. We all made some memories in that room.

RAPHAEL RAKOSI-SCHMIDT CHERRY BLOSSOM TREE It was the first day of spring and in an act of cosmic alignment, the trees in front of school had just bloomed. When I saw the bright pink blossoms, I knew what I must do. Commune. With the tree. With nature. With springtime. I really had no choice in the matter other than to give in to my deepest desires. I climbed the tree, and sitting upon its branches, flowers and leaves obscuring my own visage, I finally achieved true enlightenment. 10/10 would climb again.

REMY GOLDBERG MME. BALLAS’S ROOM There is never a dull moment in Madame Ballas’ IB French HL class. It holds some of my favorite BCA memories. Before class every day, we would all just loiter outside of the door until someone made the first move to go inside. The running joke is that we can’t enter the room unless Gordon is there. There are too many great moments to count; the quick-english modes, every déclenché, the heart-wrenching classic french films. I’m going to miss it. 81

RONNIE THE LOCKERS “The Lockers” aren’t just a place- they’re a way of life. Every year, groups of pals seem to unconsciously yet unanimously agree on the location of their new headquarters. A constant of BCA life, we follow the unspoken rule to congregate at The Lockers before 7:57 (7:55 is fake) in order to exchange homework, calculators, and low-quality memes. We didn’t cure cancer here, but we did laugh and take naps, and that’s what really matters. :^) 82

SARAH LACKEY AND AKANKSHA SRIVASTAVA GIRLS’ 2ND FLOOR BATHROOM We met because we both played volleyball in freshman year. According to Sarah, Akanksha seemed like a nice person, but according to Akanksha, Sarah asked a dumb question and was therefore a dumb person (wow Akanksha). But this bathroom was where we changed for volleyball every day, and we had so many conversations in there that should never, ever be repeated. So, you could say that we have a pretty “crappy” friendship (that was Sarah’s joke. Sarah takes full credit). 85

shasha THE FENCE In the battle between fence and person, fence always wins. Color runs are also dangerous.

T HALLWAY WITH BARR One of my fondest moments of high school would probably have to be my morning’s with Barr. From speed reading a lit assignment due in two hours to making bubble tea in the hallway, to random planking, to eating oranges every morning my senior year wouldn’t be complete with out my Barr mornings

TIGER HASHIKURA COURTYARD In my humble opinion, this has always been the prettiest part of our campus. I’ve spent my lunch mods eating and playing cards with friends while enjoying the nice weather, but I’ve also ran rushed acapella meetings in the cold December weather. Happiness, serenity, frustration, and panic are all feelings I’ve experienced in this courtyard, but all the time I’ve spent here nurtured families that I’m proud to be able to call myself a part of.

VICTORIA JUNIOR HALLWAY LOCKERS Decorating these lockers with Katherine, Rachel, and Sneha as a Christmas fireplace was the only source of joy that I found in junior year. We kept the decorations up until June.